Bangkok: An 18-year-old Saudi woman who said she was abused by her family and feared for her life if deported back home left Thailand late on Friday night for Canada, which has granted her asylum, officials said. The fast-moving developments capped an eventful week for Rahaf Mohammed Alqunun. She fled family, visiting Kuwait and flew to Bangkok, where she barricaded herself in an airport hotel to avoid deportation and grabbed global attention by mounting a social media campaign for asylum.
Her case highlighted the cause of women’s rights in Saudi Arabia, where several women fleeing abuse by their families have been caught trying to seek asylum abroad in recent years and returned home. Human rights activists say many similar cases go unreported. —Agencies
